Thursday, February 22, 2018

Thursday Movie Picks - Television Edition: Legal Dramas

Written as part of the weekly blogathon hosted by Wandering Through the Shelves. It's easy to join - just pick three movies that fit the week's theme and write a bit about them!
WELL. Legal dramas, huh?

One could argue that there are too many shows on TV about lawyers, and one would not necessarily be wrong. However, that doesn't mean that they're all not great. On the contrary, there are lots of different directions you can take with legal dramas, which is perhaps why there have been so many! I wanted to be a lawyer for years, but ultimately decided it wasn't for me. But I still love watching lawyers in movies and on TV. These are some of my favorite legal dramas.

Damages (2007-2012) A scared, desperate young woman runs out of a building, covered in blood. Damages has one of the most instantly grabbing first scenes of any TV series in recent memory. And it followed through on that promise with a deliciously twisty rest of the season, following both the "past" (showing the buildup to that moment) and the "present" (showing the fallout of that moment). The young woman's name is Ellen Parsons (Rose Byrne in her first big role), and she is a brand new first-year associate working for high-powered litigator Patty Hewes (Glenn Close, absolutely tearing up the screen and winning a well-deserved Emmy in the process), who has just taken on a class action lawsuit that is reminiscent of the Enron scandal. Patty is dedicated to justice for her clients, but she is ruthless in her pursuit of it. She thinks she has to be, because her opponents are just as ruthless, if not more so. But her questionable morality, and what happens because of the decisions she makes, prove difficult for Ellen to reconcile. The growing, complex relationship between the two women (and the tremendous performances of the actresses portraying them) is the heart of the series, but the ripped-from-the-headlines season-long cases - the second season is inspired by the 2001 California energy crisis, the third season by the Bernie Madoff scandal (with a terrific Len Cariou and Lily Tomlin), and the fourth by Blackwater - are smart and fantastically plotted. Damages is a legal thriller of the highest order.

The Good Wife (2009-2016) Another ripped-from-the-headlines plot, this one about the titular "good wife" of a politician caught having an extramarital affair, who decides to go back to work as an attorney, at a law firm run by a former law school classmate. Only she has to start at the bottom, as an associate. The series' seven season-long arc is TREMENDOUS, charting Alicia Florrick's growth, both as an attorney and as a person, as she starts to have more agency and control in her own life... and also goes from seeing things in black and white to seeing them in shades of grey. Juliana Marguiles won two Emmys for her lead performance, and they were both tremendously deserved. And she's not the only one - Archie Panjabi won for Supporting Actress for her brilliantly cagey, underplayed performance as the firm's bisexual investigator, and Martha Plimpton and Carrie Preston won Guest acting Emmys for two of the series' most memorable recurring characters (and The Good Wife is FULL of memorable recurring characters). The Good Wife was always wonderfully scripted and brilliantly performed, and really grappled with the modern use of technology and how the law has struggled to keep up with it. And among all that, it never lost sight of its characters and their evolving, complicated relationships - there are few single episodes of television better than the fifth season episode "Hitting the Fan" in which the weight of the entirety of the series comes crashing down on the characters in the most stunning way.

Drop Dead Diva (2009-2014) Maybe my favorite of all these series, Drop Dead Diva may have aired on Lifetime, but there's nothing "guilty" about the pleasure it provides. When kind, self-absorbed model Deb and brilliant plus-sized lawyer Jane die at the same time, Deb ends up returning to Earth in Jane's body. Turns out, she was, morally, a size zero - neither truly good nor truly bad, and gets a second chance at life. Yes, it's predictable and formulaic, but good lord, Brooke Elliott is a wonder in the lead role. The series's fizzy, breezy tone is a delight for what is essentially a drama, and the miniature morality plays of each episode are easier to take with Elliott's effervescent performance. She's never less than great at charting Deb's slow awakening to the possibility that she could do more with her life than just being a model on "The Price is Right", and she's a killer comedienne to boot. If you haven't seen it, give the pilot episode a try. It's the best kind of comfort food television.

I didn't watch Damages when it was on but then worked my way through the first season and really liked it, Glenn of course was great, but haven't had a chance to return to it yet but will.

I've never seen an entire episode of The Good Wife though I've heard good things about it but to catch up now seems onerous.

I've never really looked into Drop Dead Diva, I think the title kept me at bay.

Since the number of shows about lawyers is nearly limitless I did a small theme within the theme. We’re L.A. bound!

Perry Mason (1957-1966)-Criminal attorney Perry Mason (Raymond Burr-in the role that took him from villain to hero) aided by his loyal, intuitive secretary Della Street (Barbara Hale) and investigator Paul Drake (William Hopper-son of famous gossip columnist Hedda) manages to save his client week after week with a last minute moment of revelation. Loaded with familiar faces including future stars like Robert Redford, Dick Clark, and in a guest shot when Burr was ill-Bette Davis. Based on the Erle Stanley Gardner series of novels.

The Bold Ones: The Lawyers (1969-1972)-Venerated Los Angeles attorney Walter Nichols (Burl Ives) takes brother lawyers Brian & Neil Darrell (Joseph Campanella and James Farentino) into his firm and mentors them through their cases and lives. Part of an alternating series of dramas all under the umbrella title (The New Doctors, The Protectors, The Senator were the others) shown on rotating weeks. Again loaded with rising stars, Ellen Burstyn (just before The Exorcist), Martin Sheen, Richard Dreyfuss and Jack Klugman among others as guests.

L.A. Law (1986-1994)-The trials and tribulations of the members of Los Angeles-based law firm McKenzie, Brackman, Chaney and Kuzak was a monster hit in its day. While it was highly glamourized rather than using the trials as a sort of mystery to be solved the series approach was more of one focusing on the nuts and bolts of the legal profession (torts, ethics, briefs etc.) at least in its initial seasons. It did however spend a great deal of time in the bedroom and actually created a huge buzz with a supposed sexual position called The Venus Butterfly that never failed to satisfy.

I have to say I have not seen any of these. I don't know what channel Damages is on..or was. I heard nothing but excellent reviews about The Good Wife and would like to see some of these episodes. The last one looks funny but not sure what they can do after a few episodes.

Damages was on FX for its first three seasons, then on satellite-only DirecTV. I'm pretty sure it's on Netflix now, though. Once you start you won't be able to stop. The Good Wife is GREAT, full stop. Drop Dead Diva is very cute as opposed to laugh-out-loud hilarious, and while they went to increasingly ridiculous lengths to keep the plot afloat in later seasons, for the first couple it worked very well.

Yes to The Good Wife, of course. And I had such a crush on Panjabi. I know of Drop Dead Divas, but somehow never knew it had anything to do with the law. My real shame, though, is there was a TV series with Rose Byrne and Glen Close and I somehow never heard of it.

About Me

Performer since birth, tap dancer since the age of 10. Life-long book-lover. Film obsessive. Frustrated artist since college graduation. Non-profit database specialist by day, tap teacher by night, Netflix binge-watcher by weekend.